


Might be Worth it

by Ellejabell



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: M/M, Spoiler Alert - Freeform, Stripping, it's a kiss and a misunderstanding, roller skating, slight moment of dub con, they work it out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-18
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2020-06-02 14:03:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,769
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19442923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellejabell/pseuds/Ellejabell
Summary: When James said roller disco Remus hadn't been expecting this.





	Might be Worth it

It wasn’t the first time Remus had been roller skating, maybe the third or the fourth. Which accounted for his at least passable performance. Roller disco. That’s what James had called it when he’d rung Remus earlier that week to tell him to block out his Friday night. James had also said that it was “Purple Rain” (whatever that meant) and that Remus would be expected to dress up. Which was how Remus had ended up dressed in a sweater vest and slacks while surrounded by people in various states of glitter. He’d worn a tie for christ sake. When he’d arrived outside the rink to meet James, Lily, and Peter, it had taken James a full five minutes to stop laughing while Lily patted him gently on the back.

“He said dress up,” Remus muttered through gritted teeth.

“Well, yes, love” Lily seemed to be fighting valiantly to keep from smiling herself, “But even  
I assumed you’d know what he meant.”

While James was wearing far and away the most outrageous costume consisting of short, short red shorts, a billowing floral top, and more glitter than any man had a right to, both Lily and Peter had also made an effort to embrace the theme. Which is what, Remus now realized “Purple Rain,” was. Fuck it he thought sourly, and shooting James a dirty look he laced up his skates and set out.

He was gratified to note that of the four of them he was, surprisingly, the most graceful. James skated with a blunt athleticism while both Lily and Peter fell into the wallhugger camp. James kept trying to draw Lily out, holding her hands and terrifying everyone as he attempted to skate backwards. It wasn’t long before Remus was skating steadily around the rink, his self consciousness somewhat diminished in the chaos of the activity.

“I see you’ve struggled a bit with the theme,” an unfamiliar voice said much too close to Remus’ ear. His already wounded ego reared its ugly head. He turned toward the stranger ready with a cutting remark of his own only to be met with what must have been the most beautiful man he had ever seen. He was tall and slim with the kind of even symmetrical features that made it difficult to look away. He was mixed race with his slightly slanted eyes and sharp cheekbones sat among dark flawless skin, but his hair was the real triumph. Long, silky, and curly black, he had piled it on top of his head in an almost uncanny recreation of Prince’s signature look.

In fact, looking down Remus saw that he had had no trouble at all with the theme as his outfit, from the ruffle of his cravat to the dramatic purple jacket, was spot on. So instead of the biting remark he’d had prepared what he managed instead was a slightly strangled.

“I see you didn’t.”

The stranger smiled a Cheshire smile.

“I never could resist an opportunity to dress up. I’m Sirius by the way.”

“Remus, Remus Lupin” He held out his hand as if to shake and then felt silly and dropped it again.

Sirius teased him lightly about the sweater vest and trousers and Remus shot back with quips of his own, ranging from his hair to the cravat, though in Remus’ opinion both were fabulous. They’d been skating like James and Lily earlier except with Sirius going backwards and Remus following.

“You’re really good at this,” Remus said, blushing.

“I am aren’t I,” Sirius said, executing a flawless twirl. Remus wanted to tease him for it but he was too impressed to come up with anything good. When Sirius faced him again, he dropped some of the preformative veneer and a sort of charming earnestness fell over him.

“Actually, you are too. I mean I could tell you’ve never been here before, not just by the way you were dressed but, I would have remembered you,” this time it was Sirius’ turn to blush, “you skate really well. Like you understand it.”

“Understand it?” Remus said, trying to keep his voice steady.

“Yeah I mean it’s different than other things right? The wheels and all. It’s a bit like flying, and if you understand it, it’s easier than walking, like gliding, like you’re Jesus performing miracles for his followers.”

Remus laughed at this. Sirius spoke with such passion. It was enchanting.

“You must really love it.”

“Oh, yeah,” Sirius smiled “It’s the best thing in the world. I never feel quite like I do when I’m skating.”

“I haven’t been in years,” Remus admitted.

“You should come here more often,” Sirius lit up with excitement, “I could teach you all sorts of brilliant things. I’ll bet you’d be really good.”

More blushing.

“I don’t know, I think my mates just came on a lark and I’m not great at doing things on my own.”

“You wouldn’t be on your own! I’d be here, besides might be worth it,” he winked lasciviously.

It just might at that, Remus thought.

The two of them circled the rink more times than Remus cared to count. He knew he was horribly neglecting his friends, especially poor Peter who kept shooting him reproachful glances from his place on the wall every time Remus caught his eye. But Remus couldn’t be bothered to care. Talking to Sirius was like a drug. His particular brand of exuberance seemed to perfectly compliment Remus’ caustic humor and he found himself laughing more than he had in ages. Everyone seemed to know Sirius, calling out greetings and making jokes, but the other man was a curious and attentive listener and Remus didn’t feel lost the way he sometimes did with popular friends like James. They were flirting he realized after a while. He, Remus Lupin, was actually flirting with a boy, a beautiful boy, maybe the most beautiful boy he had ever met and it felt amazing.

Distantly he heard the announcer calling out something and the volume of the assembled skaters seemed to increase. Sirius put his hand on Remus’ shoulder and leaned in slightly, his breath ghosting across his ear.

“I’ve got to go check on something. Find me later okay?” Intoxicated by Sirius’ earthy smell and his overwhelming closeness Remus merely nodded. Then Sirius gave his shoulder one last squeeze and zipped off into the crowd.

Remus tried to follow Sirius with his eyes but people started pressing in and somewhere in the chaos Remus lost track of him. The announcer was calling everyone to the middle for some sort of special performance and Remus was starting to feel overwhelmed by the press of bodies when James barreled up beside him.

“Where did you get off to?” James asked with a knowing twinkle in his eye.

“Oh, you know, around,” Remus said, refusing to humor his curiosity.

“Meet anyone interesting?” He drew out the word until each syllable had its own weight. Remus looked him dead in the eye before saying “Not really,” as flatly as possible. If James wanted to know something specific he could damn well ask. Specifically. He looked about to do just that so Remus diverted him.

“Where did Peter and Lily get off to?”

“Oh they wanted to take a break, they’ll come join us later. I wanted to see the show,” excitement sparkled in his eyes.

It was then that Remus looked around and realized they were on the very inside edge of a circle the crowd had formed in the center of the rink.

The evening’s host and announcer, Mandy-mazing, was circling around, hyping the crowd for some sort of performance that was apparently imminent. Remus had just calibrated to the new environment when he heard her say, “Introducing… Midnight Star!” and Sirius skated out into the circle. Remus’ eyes went wide.

The crowd cheered as Sirius skated around, showing off to the audience. Then he took up position in the very center of the space and struck a pose.

The music started.

It was a slow grinding beat at first that lead Sirius in a series of crisscrossing steps and flourishes. It was hypnotic, this winding dance full of gyrating hips and smouldering glances. Then the verse kicked in and Sirius planted in the center, his hips never stopping as his hands moved up to the cravat at his collar. Slowly, with a kind of languid grace, he pulled the thing apart, teasing it loose until he had a hand on each end of it and could pull it seductively back and forth across the back of hi neck before throwing it into the crowd.

He was moving again, impossibly complex steps juxtaposing the way he slowly let his coat fall off his shoulders. He was spinning then, faster and faster, back to the center and chest flung out to the sky. He went until the beautiful purple jacket hung only from his fingertips and then he twirled it above his head like laso and released it too into the eager mass of people.

Remus got it then. This wasn’t just a dance number. He felt as if he’d stumbled into an alternate universe where he got to watch this beautiful man take off his clothes with absolute precision.

Next came his shirt revealing a sequined crop top and Remus’ mouth went dry.

“Can’t wait to see him take off those trousers over his skates” James murmured a smirk in his voice.

But Remus wasn’t listening because as they watched the man went to do just that. He slid his palms up over his thighs, skates undulating beneath him. They drew him in a pattern of swirls and turns flipping forward and backward and making Remus’ head spin. His thumbs hooked in the waistband of his sinfully tight purple trousers and teased it down inch by inch until the curve of his ass was deliciously revealed. The whistles and catcalls of the crowd were met with another of Sirius’ cheshire smiles as he continued to spin and show off those two tantalizing inches of skin.

But his hands didn’t continue their downward journey, slipping forward instead and allowing the trousers to snap back up into place. Trying to manage a truly embarrassing wash of disappointment, Remus almost missed it when Sirius’ hands, which had been sliding across the front of his thighs, tightened and pulled. In one clean motion the trousers tore away to reveal a pair of fuchsia pants.

The crowd went wild.

Beside him James gave a shout and swore before slapping Remus heavily on the back and cheering like a madman. Remus, for his part had lost all coherent thought. All he could do was gape as this veritable Adonis of a man swished around the rink in a purple sequined crop top and fuchsia y-fronts.

Then the real dancing began. Sirius swished one foot in front of the other, pulling himself into impossible spins, before sinking into the straddle split and bouncing there before popping back up again into a flawless arabesque. Remus had never seen anyone move like that. Liquid and smooth. He never stuttered, never paused, just moved fluidly from one perfectly executed move to the next. It was dance, it was art, it was sex personified and Remus had never been more turned on in his life.

Suddenly the music crescendoed and then dropped to a low pulse as Sirius turned and stopped himself in the middle of the circle. Then he made a big show of turning slowly in a circle, examining the crowd in an almost predatory manner. A chorus of ooh and excited murmurs swept the crowd and Remus realized that something was up. But it wasn’t until Sirius had made a full rotation and stopped squarely in front of him that he got it. Sirius extended one long painted finger toward him, made direct eye contact, and then crooked it in an inescapable invitation. Remus went red.

But the crowd was hollering again and James was laughing and pushing him towards the center. Some part of him was screaming that he did not want to go but before he knew it Sirius had pulled him, stumbling, towards the center and the music was picking up. From there everything happened so quickly. Sirius resumed his sexy undulating dance, this time using Remus as the focal point. He would grind against his back then twist away pulling one of Remus’ hands to his lips, then he’d be back again caressing his shoulders, and hips, and thighs. Somewhere along the way he lost the sequined top and his bare chest was exposed sweaty and firm. Remus was riveted, at once experiencing the consuming mortification of being the center of so much unwanted attention while at the same not being able to take his eyes off of every little thing that Sirius was doing to him.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he was aware that song was building to its end and for Remus it couldn’t come soon enough. He was acutely aware of his misplaced outfit, the burning of his cheeks and the hot ache of his arousal. He had never liked being the center of attention and this deadly cocktail of embarrassment and heat was more than he could stand. Then Sirius was in front of him locking eyes with him one more time before turning slowly around, bending at the waist, and shimmying his fuchsia ass into the air. He bent himself nearly in half before curving back up, placing his hand directly over his cock, and pulling.

The fuchsia tore away and underneath he wore nothing but a tiny, purple, thong. Remus wanted to die. This was all too much, the music, the crowd, the unbelievably sexy man jiggling his perfect ass back into Remus’ groin. Then, just at the music reached its final height, Sirius turned around, blasting Remus with that dangerous, dangerous smile. They were chest to chest now, breathing in each other’s air and Remus was too focused on wishing for it to be over to register Sirius’ hand’s snaking around the small of his back and the nape of his neck.

Then, Sirius was kissing him, hard and passionate, and all Remus could think was not here, not like this.

Remus felt outside of himself. He could hear the crowd cheering, the music finishing, and he could feel the press of Sirius’ lips against his own, but his arms hung limp at his sides. Shock paralized his system followed quickly by shame and then, overwhelmingly, by anger. How dare he! His brain was shouting as Sirius broke away and twirled out toward the audience holding Remus’ arm aloft as they were champions in a ring. Then Sirius let go and spun away, bowing around the circle. The announcer came back, calling for another round of applause and signalling the end of the show. The crowd collapsed inward and in all of the following chaos Remus managed to contain his shaking rage and extricate himself from the press of bodies. Head down he made his way quickly towards the edge of the rink.

Once off the rink he found a bench by his shoes and allowed his head to collapse into his shaking hands. With the muffled noise of the rink behind him he felt like he could breathe again and as his heart rate dropped and his anger ebbed away he was left feeling tired and drained. He’d never been good with crowds or attention and despite how undeniably attractive he had found Sirius he hadn’t appreciated how much the other man had assumed. Ah well he thought the pretty ones are always assholes. Just then he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“Hey, are you okay?” Lilly sat down beside him. Sighing he lifted his head and met her worried gaze.

“Yeah, I’m fine, really. Just…overwhelmed.” He attempted a smile and she let out a small laugh.

“I’ll bet. That was quite the show.” He cringed and she continued, “I could have killed James for pushing you out there like that. He knows how much you hate that sort of thing. Still might, at that.”

Remus shrugged and rested his elbows on his knees again. For a moment neither of them said anything.

“God, he was fit though, wasn’t he?” Lily said after a minute and Remus let out a surprised laugh.

“Yeah,” he sighed, “really fucking fit.”

“Too bad he’s an arsehole. Kissing you like that, just for a good show. Disgusting.” Her voice held a characteristic level of outrage and Remus flushed red again at the memory.

“Too bad,” he mumbled eventually. Sirius hadn’t seemed like an arsehole, not when they’d been talking before. He’d seemed open and genuine and a bit like an overgrown puppy, eager and lovely. I guess you never can tell he thought at last, but disappointment clawed at him.

“Soooo, ready to get back out there!” Lily chirped, her voice falsely bright “Back on the horse and all that.”

Remus smiled at the effort.

“Nah, I think I’ll just head home, say goodbye to boys for me?”

Lily didn’t look too surprised as she squeezed his hand.

“Of course, love, we’ll see you tomorrow for dinner.”

Remus squeezed back and watched as she got up and headed back to the rink. Slowly he removed his skates, replacing them with his worn brown loafers. It was nice being back on the ground. Something about the whole night felt surreal, heady and thrilling in a way he wasn’t used to. He’d never been good with surprises and part of him knew that had Sirius kissed him somewhere quieter, somewhere alone, maybe he would have really enjoyed it. But that kiss had felt cheap, like it was all part of the show and had nothing to do with Remus himself.

He shuddered, shaking off the feeling, and looking forward to a hot cup of tea and bed. He took his skates back to the counter and made a quick detour to the bathroom before finding his way outside into the night air. He closed his eyes and just breathed for a moment. Allowing the close, humid air of the rink out and cool, clean, night air in.

“Remus!”

The voice behind him was urgent and out of breath. He turned slowly, slightly surprised to see Sirius gliding toward him in a hastily donned a pair of loose shorts and ratty t shirt. He looked nothing like the cofident sex symbol from earlier but instead an air of akward confusion hung about him. He was twisting his hands nervously and his previously perfect hair was now falling haphazard across his face. He was still so god damned attractive.

“Are you leaving already?” Sirius asked.

“Yes,” Remus replied shortly. Refusing to give into Sirius’ kicked puppy act.

“Oh...um...were you not having a good time?”

“I’m just tired,” Remus said, again trying to keep his voice as even as possible. He was desperate for this conversation to be over, so when Sirius didn’t reply right away he turned to leave.

“Are you angry with me?” that anxious urgency was back in Sirius’ voice as he raised it slightly to stop the other man. Remus sighed, his shoulders stiffening, then turned slowly back to face Sirius.

“Yeah, a bit,” he said cooly.

“Was it because I kissed you?” Remus was surprised at how quickly Sirius had caught on. The earnest boy from earlier was back replacing that captivatingly sexy persona he had while dancing and Remus couldn’t help but like him. Most of the fight left his body and his shoulders sagged a bit.

“I--” he started and then tried again, “I don’t like being surprised and really don’t like being the center of attention, but yes, it was the kiss. You should have asked me and not just assumed that I wanted to…”

“You didn’t want to?” Sirius jumped in, eyes going wide with hurt and realization. This boy is going to be the death of me, Remus thought.

“No, I-- That’s not the point. I didn’t want to like that. In front of all those people. It felt cheap, like it was just another part of the show, like I could have been anyone. And you didn’t ask. You should have asked.”

Sirius looked down at the ground and for a couple of moments he didn’t say anything, guilt radiating off of him. Then something in him seemed to shift. He straightened up, stilled his hands, and looked Remus dead in the eye.

“You’re right, I should have asked first. I tend to be impulsive and rash and that wasn’t fair to you and I’m really sorry I made you uncomfortable. But I want you to know, it couldn’t have been anyone. It was you I wanted. I wouldn’t have kissed anyone else. I mean I couldn’t stop watching you and then I talked to you and… fuck, you’re smart and sarcstic and funny and I… I really like you Remus.”

He was skating slowly up the path to where Remus was standing and with his skates on Sirius towered over him a fair bit. But his eyes were sincere and hands weren’t shaking anymore and Remus really wanted to believe him.

“I get it if you just want to put this behind you and never see me again or what have you, but, um, I’d really like to see you again. Can I? See you again, I mean?”

He looked so hopeful and Remus was a bit worried if he said yes now he’d be saying yes to this man for the rest of his life. Might be worth it a traitorous part of his brain pitched in, reminding him of someone. Instead he hedged.

“How do I know something like this won’t happen again?”

Sirius laughed.

“Oh I’m not gonna lie, it probably will. I’ve always been terrible at thinking things through and not just leaping in,” Remus scoffed and went to turn but Sirius gently grabbed his arm, “But I will say this, I’m willing to try, and I’ll always apologize and I’ll always learn. Also, who knows? Might be worth it.”

So that’s who, Remus thought, but Sirius’ face was again very close to his and his eyes were searching Remus’ like he could find the meaning of the universe there. They both released a shaky breath and then laughed at the weird synchronicity of it.

“Would it be alright if I kissed you now, Remus Lupin?” And held by those fairy eyes, Remus nodded slowly.

**Author's Note:**

> I would like say how grateful I am for this fest and to thank the amazing mods who are amazingly patient with me and my abysmal procrastination. You da real MVP. 
> 
> Also, as always, I have to thank my phenomenal beta @stevie_RST. Go read everything she's ever written. It's brilliant.


End file.
